“I told him to back off in the locker room after the game. He wants us to go back to the way things were, like nothing happened, and I can’t do that. He hurt me and you. Just because he finally moved out doesn’tmean it’s okay.”
I reach up and dry my hands before running my fingers through Seb’s hair. “Have you guys actually sat down and talked about everything?”
“No, he said he’s sorry a bunch, but that’s it,” Seb shrugs. He looks heartbroken sitting here with me. It has to be killing him inside, even though he hasn’t shown an outward reaction to others. I’ve been so busy and away so much lately. They love each other so much.
“You need to have a proper conversation with each other when you’re ready. Do you want to work things out with E?”
“I miss him,” Seb whispers, a tear trickling out.
My poor hurricane. “I know you do, and I miss him, too. Take some time to talk. Maybe couples therapy or something?”
Nodding, Seb closes his eyes as a few more tears slip out. I continue to run my fingers through his hair and lend quiet support. Knowing Seb, he’s been holding a lot of feelings inside. Once his tears have stopped, he wipes his cheeks and opens his eyes. “Sorry, Sunshine.”
“Hey, don’t you dare apologize for your feelings or for crying. I love every part of you.”
Seb leans over and gives me a quick kiss. “I came over here to support you, not to have my own breakdown,” he smiles.
“You've been supporting me nonstop. We all need to break down once in a while, and I’m happy you’re comfortable doing that in front of me. Now tell me more about Gabby’s boyfriend and how Troy's doing.”
Seb begrudgingly admits he’s a nice guy and has heard nothing bad about him. Gabby seems happy, and Troy is good. Finn isn’t super busy right now, so Zander being away hasn’t been an issue. We talk about basketball and school gossip until my water cools. Seb leaves, and I scrub myself clean before getting out and dressing.
We settle on the couch to watch tv with ice cream. Once we finish, Seb encourages me to lie down in my corner with a blanket over me and my head in his lap. I’m out almost instantly.
Sometime later I hear voices, and then I’m being moved. “Night, Sunshine,” I hear Seb whisper with a kiss on my cheek, then everything fades into oblivion.
Chapter 52
Summer
A knock on my door wakes me the next morning. “Morning darling. Time to get up,” Zander greets.
Turning over, I rub my dry eyes and open them to see Zander at my door. “Morning. I’m up,” I reply in a hoarse voice. Reaching over to my nightstand, I check my phone to see it’s 7am. I get up and get dressed for the day before going to the bathroom. I know I slept for a while, but the lingering tiredness persists. Walking towards the kitchen, I stop. Seb's sleeping on the couch. Huh. Guess he stayed over. Zander's cooking eggs and bacon at the stove, so I put the kettle on for tea.
“Ray texted. The movers will be at the condo at 10am this morning, and they'll unpack and put all the big stuff away for us,” Zander tells me.
“Okay. That’s good.” Once the kettle boils, I steep the tea and decide to call Jake. Going back to my room, I call the Virginia phone. It takes several rings, but Ray answers the video call. “Morning,” I greet.
“Morning Summer. Just a minute,” Ray responds. The phone jiggles around, then I see Jake’s face.
“Hi Jake. Doing okay?” I smile before taking a sip of tea.
“Hi Sum. I’m ok. Where are you?”
“In my room.” I turn the camera and show Jake my room. It’s fairly clean, not that Jake would care. “What’cha think?” I ask.
“It suits you.”
“Thanks. How are you with all the stuff we told you?”
“Dealing Sum. Dad’s going to answer some questions for me today.”
“Sounds good. I’ll be heading to your house soon with my dad and some friends so the movers can get in. My phone will be with me, so have Ray call me if you need anything or want to talk.”
“Thanks. See you later.”
“Bye, Jake,” I blow a kiss and wave before hanging up. Zander is eating at the island when I return with a second plate beside him. “Eat while it’s hot, darling.”
“Thanks.” I finish my tea, then sit. We discuss all the things we need to do at the condo this weekend, and he grabs a pen and notepad from the drawer so I can make a list. Once we’re done eating, I wake Seb before doing the dishes. Seb gets dressed and eats quickly, then we grab painting supplies, basic tools, laundry soap, and a ladder from the garage before leaving.
